NI Water has commenced their Sewer Misconnection Investigation Works programme, which is initially targeting the Newry drainage area.

Using innovative 'FOG' technology, the company will be able to identify properties where foul drains, which include drainage from bathrooms and washing machines, are misconnected to the stormwater drains/sewers.

Stormwater drains should only carry rainwater from roofs and driveways and this misconnection can cause environmental pollution in watercourses downstream.

The main contractor for this work is AG Wilson, with sub-contractor Amelio.

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NI Water's Wastewater Production Lines Project Support Officer, William Acheson, explained the FOG process used in the programme.

"A FOG machine, which produces an artificial fog, or mist, is pumped into the sewer through a manhole in the street," he said.

"As the FOG builds up within the pipe, it will escape through various connections to the sewer.

"Where a misconnection exists, we will be able to see the FOG coming out of the vent pipe at the customer's property. It may also come out of road gullies and manholes within the street if these misconnections are connected to the public sewer. 

"The wastewater infrastructure in the Newry area is currently over capacity and closed for future development, so this FOG testing is a quicker way of detecting areas where there are issues with our infrastructure."

He added: "We appreciate the support of the community as we work to deliver this essential scheme in the coming months."

The FOG technology is safe and fully biodegradable and disappears quickly after the test.

A project video can be viewed here.